A stewardess asked for her drink order.
‘Nothing, thank you.’
‘Is there anything else I can do for you, Mrs. Kane?’
Florentyna looked up, surprised that the young girl knew her name.
‘I used to work in one of your hotels.’
‘Which one?’ asked Florentyna.
‘The Detroit Baron. Barons would always be the most popular choice for stewardesses. If only America was governed the way you run your hotels, we wouldn’t be in the trouble we’re in now,’ she said before moving on down the aisle.
Florentyna flicked through a copy of Newsweek. Under the headline ‘How far does Watergate go?’ she studied the faces of Ehrlichman, Haldeman and Dean before closing the magazine. On the cover was a picture of Richard Nixon and the caption ‘When was the President told?’
A little after midnight, she arrived back at East Sixty-fourth Street. Richard was sitting up in the crimson chair by the fire. He rose to greet her.
‘Well, did they ask you to run for President of the United States?’
‘No, but how do you feel about Congresswoman Kane?’
Florentyna phoned Edward the next day. ‘I am willing to put my name forward as the Democratic candidate for Congress,’ she said.
‘Thank you. I ought to try and express my thoughts more fully, but for now — thank you.’
‘Edward, may I know who would have been the candidate if I had said no?’
‘They were pushing me to run myself. But I told them I had a better candidate in mind. As I’m certain this time around you’ll take advice, even if you become President.’
‘I never did become class president.’
‘I did, and I’ve still ended up serving you.’
‘Where do I start, coach?’
‘The primary is in three months, so you’d better reserve every weekend between now and the fall.’
‘I already have starting this weekend — and can you tell me who was the young woman from Radcliffe who stopped me at the door and talked about Kennedy?’
‘Janet Brown. In spite of her age, she’s already one of the most respected case workers in the city’s Human Services department.’
‘Do you have her phone number?’
During the week Florentyna informed the Baron board of directors of her decision. They appointed Richard co-chairman of the Group and elected two new directors.
Florentyna called Janet Brown and offered her a job as her full-time political assistant and was delighted by Janet’s immediate acceptance. She then added two new secretaries to her staff for political work only. Finally, she called the Chicago Baron and instructed them to leave the thirty-eighth floor free, warning them she would need the entire floor left at her disposal for at least a year.
‘Taking it seriously, aren’t we?’ said Richard later that evening.
‘Indeed I am, because I’m going to have to work very hard if you’re ever going to be the First Gentleman.’
Chapter twenty-six
‘Are you expecting much opposition?’
‘Nothing of real consequence,’ said Edward. ‘There may be a protest candidate or two, but as the committee is fully behind you, the real fight should be with the Republicans.’
‘Do we know who their candidate is likely to be?’
‘Not yet. My spies tell me it’s between two men, Ray Buck, who seems to be the choice of the retiring member, and Stewart Lyle, who served on the City Council for the past eight years. They’ll both run a good campaign, but that’s not our immediate problem. With so little time left, we must concentrate on the Democratic primary.’
‘How many people do you think will vote in the primary?’ asked Florentyna.
‘Can’t be certain. All we do know is that there are roughly a hundred and fifty thousand registered Democrats and that the turnout is usually between forty-five and fifty percent. So that would point to around seventy or eighty thousand.’
Edward unfolded a large map of Chicago and placed it in front of Florentyna.
‘The boundaries of the constituency are marked in red and run from East Chicago Avenue in the south to the Evanston border in the north, from Ravenswood and Northwest Highway in the west to the lake in the east.’
‘The district hasn’t changed since the days of Henry Osborne,’ said Florentyna, ‘so it should all come back to me very quickly.’
‘Let’s hope so, because our main task is to see that every Democrat in that area is aware of who you are through the press, advertising, television and public appearances. Whenever they open their newspaper, turn on the radio or watch TV Florentyna Kane must be with them. The voters must feel you are everywhere and they must believe your only interest is in them. In fact, there can be no major function in Chicago between now and March nineteenth at which you are not present.’
‘Suits me,’ said Florentyna. ‘I’ve already set up my campaign headquarters in the Chicago Baron, which my father had the foresight to build at the heart of the district. I propose to spend weekends here and any free days during the week at home with my family, so where do you want me to start?’
‘I’ve called a press conference for next Monday, to be held at Democratic headquarters. A short speech followed by a question-and-answer session and then we’ll serve them coffee so you can meet all the key people individually. As you enjoy thinking fast on your feet, you should relish meeting the press.’
‘Any particular advice?’
‘No, just be yourself.’
‘You may live to regret that.’
Edward’s judgment turned out to be right. After Florentyna had made a short opening statement the questions came thick and fast. Under his breath, Edward whispered the names of the various journalists as each rose to his feet.
The first was Mike Royko, of the Chicago Daily News.
‘Why do you think it appropriate that a New York millionairess should run for the Ninth District of Illinois?’
‘In this context,’ said Florentyna, standing to take the questions, ‘I am not a New York millionairess. I was born in St. Luke’s General Hospital and brought up on Rigg Street. My father, who came to this country with nothing but the clothes he wore, founded the Baron Group right here in the Ninth District. I believe we must always fight to ensure that any immigrant arriving on our shores today, whether he be from Vietnam or Poland, has the opportunity to achieve the same goals as my father did.’
Edward pointed to another journalist for the next question.
‘Do you consider it a disadvantage to be a woman when seeking public office?’
‘Perhaps to a limited or ill-informed person I would have so answer yes, but not with any intelligent voter who puts the issues before outdated prejudices. Which of you if involved in a traffic accident on the way home today would think twice if the first doctor on the scene turned out to be a woman? I hope the issue of sex will soon be as irrelevant as that of religion. It seems a century ago that people asked John F. Kennedy if he thought the Presidency might change because he was a Roman Catholic. I notice nowadays the question never arises with Teddy Kennedy. Women are already playing leading roles in other nations. Golda Meir in Israel and Indira Gandhi in India are just two examples. I consider it sad that in a nation of two hundred and thirty million people, women number not one of the hundred senators and only sixteen out of the four hundred and thirty-four members of Congress.’
‘What does your husband feel about you wearing the trousers in your family?’ demanded an unsolicited questioner. Laughter broke out in certain parts of the room and Florentyna waited for complete silence.